by Jenna Rose
Unmasked
Jenna Rose
Copyright © 2019 by Jenna Rose
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
About the book
After her one-and-only crush leaves her, Bailey knows she will never love again. So when her bff invites her to a party to “meet men,” she figures why not? It’s not like she’ll be going home with anyone. But Bethany failed to mention the whole “guests must wear masks” thing, or the fact that the “innocent” get together isn’t that innocent. And then there’s the mysterious man who can’t keep his eyes off her – a man hiding a secret that could change everything.
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Contents
Prologue
1. Bailey
2. Bailey
3. Ethan
4. Bailey
5. Ethan
6. Bailey
Epilogue
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Prologue
Bailey
Six years earlier…
Ethan is the only reason I can stand doing math.
Factions and decimals – decimals and fractions. I feel like my brain is going to melt every time I open my book. But then my parents hired Ethan to help me, and everything changed.
Sure, I’m only 12 and he’s 18, but does that mean I can’t have a little crush on him? He’s tall, broad-shouldered, and so handsome I sometimes wonder why he’s helping me with my math instead of starring in movies or modeling in New York City.
He cares about my life too. He’s always asking me questions about my parents, how I’m doing, what my hopes and dreams for life after school are. I never feel like any of my answers are good enough for him, but he always smiles and at least pretends they are. He’s also the only person I know who doesn’t give me a hard time about my scar.
“It’s cute,” he’s told me many times. “You’re like a badass, female warrior.”
I always laugh. “A badass female warrior who can’t ride her bike!”
I hit a stump when I was seven and crashed down on the pavement, splitting the side of my chin open. The boys at school said I looked like the Joker, and the girls called me a monster until about a year ago. But Ethan always told me to embrace it and that it made me special.
Today, I’m wearing my cutest jeans and favorite pink T-shirt and looking forward to our session, but when he comes into the room, I can tell something’s off.
Normally, Ethan’s always smiling, and it’s a true and honest smile. But today, it’s tight and forced. Even his eyes, normally bright and blue, are cloudy like there’s a terrible storm approaching.
He always asks me how I’m doing, but today he simply sets down his bag and says, “All set to get started?”
“Um, yes…”
He also always sits next to me so we can share my book and he can see my work. I love the smell of pine from whatever product he uses, but today he pulls a chair up across the table from me. Yeah, something’s up.
But I’m too afraid to say anything. He may be sweet to me, but he’s also a lot older, and if I’m being honest, he’s kind of scary today.
“Okay, let’s get going with some fractions,” he says, sounding more like a teacher than a friendly tutor. “Have you been doing your worksheets?”
“Yes,” I reply timidly as I push the paper across the table to show him. He takes it, goes through them, and quickly grades it and hands it back to me.
“Not bad, Bailey. You’re coming along well.”
“Thanks,” I reply. When I smile back at him, I deliberately make it a sad smile, hoping he’ll catch on and ask me about it, which would give me a way into a conversation where I could hopefully find out what’s wrong with him, but he just ignores it and starts the lesson.
It’s painfully awkward as we go through our usual forty-five-minutes together, and when he closes the book and gets to his feet, I get a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach – a feeling like something bad is about to happen.
“Good luck, Bailey,” he tells me.
My hands start to tingle. “What—what do you mean?”
Is this goodbye?
“On your test tomorrow.”
“Oh,” I reply, somewhat relieved. “Yeah, thanks.”
He nods. “Good job today.”
His eyes linger on me, and the world seems to slow down. The moment stretches on and on for what feels like an eternity, and I am screaming inside, wishing I was strong enough to say something. It’s a fact now; something is going on.
I convince myself to say something, but I can’t. All I can do is watch as Ethan turns, opens the door, and walks away.
Five minutes later, my mom shows up to bring me home. I tell her all about what happened, but she just shrugs it off. “Oh, honey, he’s an eighteen-year-old man now. I’m sure he’s got lots going on in his life. You’ll see, he’ll be back to normal next week!”
But Ethan didn’t show up next week.
Or the next week, or the next week, or the next.
In fact, Ethan never showed up again. I never saw him or heard what happened. He was just…gone, like a ghost disappearing into the darkness.
And I started going to bed every night thinking the same thing: what did I do wrong?
1
Bailey
Now…
“Why don’t you come out with us tonight, girl? Get some excitement in your life?”
I want to turn around and tell Ted not to call me girl and to stop making assumptions about me and my personal life, but I can’t do that. First of all, because Ted is my boss, and second of all, because he’s right. I could use some excitement in my life.
“I’ve got plans actually,” I lie as I put away the last of the files and shut down the computer. As I get up and get my things, I can feel his eyes lingering on my body. Ted is a rich, high-powered attorney and is used to getting what he wants, and he’s made it no secret that he wants me.
But that’s not happening. Even if I was into cruel, heavy-set, angry, alcoholic men in their 50s, I’m looking for love, not a way up the ladder.
“Heading to the clubs?” he suggests, no doubt picturing me in some skimpy black dress with a pair of heels.
Again, I force a smile. “Something like that.”
Of course, I have no plans at all, just like every night of the week. My big idea for tonight includes some supermarket mochi and that new reality show on Netflix about people using their musical tastes to find their true love. But when I get back to the apartment, I find Gina, my it-girl roommate, all dolled up and primping in the bathroom mirror.
“You’re home! Why didn’t you answer my texts?”
I glance at my phone and see twenty-two unanswered. “I was working. What’s the big deal? Did someone propose to you or something?”
Gina scoffs as though I just said the dumbest thing in the world, which it probably is when it comes to her. Gina is the polar opposite of me when it comes to men. If she had my job, she’d have slept with Ted and had him wrapped around her little finger months ago. She’s gorgeous, sexy, and confident, and men mean nothing to her. They’re just a way to get money, jewelry, vacations, or anything else she might want.
I’ve never understood that kind of mentality, but then again, maybe Gina never had the spark of love I felt when I was you
ng.
Ethan…
I know it would probably sound silly to most people to claim that I met the love of my life when I was only 12 and he was 18, but after Ethan disappeared and I grew older, I realized there was a reason I couldn’t stop thinking of him. There was a reason the moment he walked out of my life was forever embedded in my mind.
“Here, I got this for you,” Gina says, shoving a dress into my hands. “Put it on. Oh, and there are heels on your bed!”
“Why would I put this on when I’m going to be watching Netflix and eating mochi all night?”
“Because you aren’t going to be watching Netflix and eating mochi all night; you are going to be coming with me to the most exclusive party of the year.”
Party? Me? She must be joking. I’ve never even worn a dress like this before, and the last and only time I wore heels was at prom when I went as friends with Jamie Dormer, whose boyfriend had dumped her the night before.
“Wipe that look off your face,” she says as she applies a deep-red lipstick. “You’re coming. You don’t even know how exclusive this party is or how hard it is to get an invite. Like, it’s basically impossible. There will be models, celebrities, politicians – world movers, okay? I told them I’d be bringing a friend, so you are coming.”
“It’s not my fault you made a promise for me.” I shrug, tossing the dress onto the shower curtain rod.
“Stop being a Debbie Downer, will you?” she snips, grabbing it back and stuffing it into my hands. She points between my legs. “You need to knock the dust off that thing! Find yourself a man already! Start a body count!”
“I don’t want a body count,” I sigh. “I just want…I just want…”
“What? Him? Ethan? The mythical man you haven’t seen in six years and had a seriously inappropriate crush on?”
“It’s not inappropriate now. I’m eighteen so he’s twenty-six.”
Gina nods. “Wow, nice math. He must have been a great tutor.”
I sigh and slump down on the edge of the tub. Gina looks like a million bucks compared to me. “I’m going to look like an idiot.”
“Girl, you need to stop talking all that shit.” She comes over to me and starts unbuttoning my blouse. We’ve got that kind of friendship. “You are gorgeous. You just have to actually go out of the house for men to see you.”
I frown as she pulls my arms into the air and slides the dress over my head. She moves her hands to the button of my pants, and I swat her away. “I can do that part, thanks.”
“Geez, relax,” she laughs. “Not like I was going to put a move on you.”
“Not like anyone is going to put a move on me.”
“Would you stop—!?”
“Fine,” I say, giving in. “I’ll go. But if Morgan Freeman isn’t there, I’m leaving.”
Laughing, Gina starts going to work on my hair. Half an hour later she has me dolled up, caked with makeup and my hair in some kind of half-curly mess she calls the I-just-had-sex look.
We catch an Uber out of town that drops us off at a dirt road with a no-trespassing sign. I glance around, wondering if we’re about to be abducted by aliens.
“Uh, Gina? There’s no party here.”
“I told you.” She winks. “It’s very exclusive.”
Grabbing my hand, she leads me down the path into the darkness. The trees form an arch above us as we walk. Only thin rays of moonlight reach the ground. I almost break my ankle a few times as I try to learn how to walk in heels, and after a few minutes, we emerge onto a dock at the edge of the water.
There are six people as well – two men in black tuxedos, and two couples dressed for the highest of occasions. Oh, and they’re all wearing masks.
“Oh, shit!” Gina hisses. She snatches me by the arm and spins me around so our backs are to them, then reaches into her purse and pulls out two masks. She hands me one. “Put this on!”
“What? You have to wear masks to this party? I thought there were celebrities and politicians—?”
“Shhh! Keep your voice down! There are celebrities and politicians, and that’s why everyone has to wear a mask!”
She quickly puts hers on, but I stare at mine. It’s black lace with two tall bunny ears. “You’re kidding, right?”
“Bailey, I love you, but if you don’t put that mask on and come with me right now, I might have to drown you in the water. Okay?”
Gina’s funny when she’s mad, and normally I’d continue pulling her leg, but I can see she’s adamant about this, so I just follow her lead and put my mask on.
“Thank you,” she whispers as we turn around and head over to the boat.
“Good evening, madams,” one of the men says in a low, proper, British voice. “May I have the password please?”
Password? Goosebumps break out on my arms as the group of masked people stare at me.
“Scortatus,” Gina says with confidence.
“Thank you.” The man nods with a smile. “Please get on board and we will depart for the house.”
I follow Gina onto the boat and take a seat. Across the bow, I can see the flickering orange glow of what must be the lights of the house where we are headed. The cool wind grips me like an icy hand, and I move closer to Gina as we pull away from the dock.
“Relax,” Gina whispers, putting a hand on my back. “It’s going to be fun!”
Right. Relax.
I can do that…
2
Bailey
It only takes a few minutes to get to the house, but as we approach the shore of the private island, I see just how enormous it really is. It’s not a house; it’s a manor, like something out of Pride and Prejudice but with a much more sinister tone. I don’t know how you get a tone just by looking at something, but hey.
The men in tuxedos get off first and tie off, then help us all to disembark.
“Enjoy your stay, madams.”
I reply with an awkward smile and follow Gina up the rich, perfectly-landscaped lawn.
“This is insane!” I whisper. “Are you sure we’re not going to be killed here?”
Gina laughs. “Would I put your life in danger, silly? Come on. This is going to be fun. Loosen up and maybe you can find a man to loosen you up!”
Yeah, if that man happens to be Ethan.
I don’t know if it’s the strange night that I’m having or what, but that thought actually does make me doubt myself for a moment. Am I really still pining over a crush I had six-years ago who I haven’t seen since? I mean, he was just my tutor; it’s not like I was old enough to go on a date with him or anything. I doubt he would even remember me if he saw me.
Maybe Gina is right. Maybe I should find myself a man tonight and be more like her. She’s had all-expense-paid trips to Dubai, meals at all the best restaurants, been spoiled with clothes and purses and heels, and even had a professional NBA player propose to her. And she seems like she’s a lot happier than I am, slaving away at a law office in a career I don’t even want to pursue, for a creepy boss who wants to get in my pants.
Maybe tonight could be a turning point for me.
We reach a massive expanse of stone that could be considered the back “patio,” where a quiet dance is going on. More men in expensive suits and women in gorgeous gowns, all masked, spinning in silence to a string quartet playing beside a gazebo lit with Christmas lights.
My heart is racing.
Are these the people Gina’s been talking about? Celebrities? Politicians? Could there be an actor in there I might know? A politician?
What am I doing here!?
“Stop freaking out,” Gina says. She can always tell when I am. “No one knows you here. Just relax and have fun.”
“Easy for you to say…”
We approach the door to the house, and Gina pulls me aside. “I have to warn you, there’s a little something I didn’t warn you about inside.”
“What!?” I snap. “Gina, come on. Seriously? I’m already freaking out. What is it?”
&n
bsp; “This isn’t exactly just a party,” she smiles.
“Okay…so what is it?”
She nods to another man in a tuxedo who pulls open the massive door to the house, and what I see inside almost knocks me over.
“It’s an orgy.”
Yup. It sure is.
As Gina pulls me inside, my senses go into overload.
Bodies. Naked, masked bodies everywhere. Gently scented candles flicker everywhere, bathing the debauchery in a warm glow. To a virgin like me, the sight of so many people having such casual sex is overwhelming.
In the corner, a woman rides a man’s face while he sits in a chair and another woman is down on her knees, doing something to him through a hole in her mask. Two women lick each other on a table in the center of the room, and around them watching are a host of men, completely nude, stroking their hard cocks while smoking cigars.
Wow. I don’t even know what to do with myself. Why didn’t she tell me this was what was going on here!?
“Gina!” I hiss, clinging to her as I realize we’re the only ones wearing clothing. “Are you insane!? What have you gotten me into!?”
I’m actually angry. Had I known this is what the party was going to be, there would have been no way I would have come. But Gina just looks amused. In fact, her eyes are sparkling as she looks from me to the girls on the table and back again.
“Don’t worry. You don’t have to participate.”
“Oh, and you might?”
She shrugs. “Depends on who I meet.”
With that, she peels my hand off her arm and starts walking away from me. I hurry after her into a lounge with a bar. Behind it, two completely naked women in white masks serve drinks to an assortment of people. Who does that? Who does this?
